Desktop Article for January 2016

“And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him.  And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves, but he was asleep.  And they went and woke him saying, ‘Save us, Lord, we are perishing.’ And he said to them, ‘Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?’ Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.  And the men marveled, saying, ‘What sort of man is this, that even the winds and sea obey him?’ “

Matt. 8:23-27 (ESV)

               

            This is such an interesting passage of Scripture to me.  This passage was part of our Bible Reading Plan for this past week, and it always strikes me that Jesus was asleep in the boat while the storm was going on.  I’ve been on a boat on Lake Erie with moderately rough water, (1-3 foot waves, maybe some 4 footers), and the farthest thing from my mind was sleep.  Jesus, who by the way, created the lake He was on, had no fear of dying in this manner, because He knew who was in control of the storm.

            I have to believe that the storm happened as it did purely for the purpose of teaching these disciples this incredible lesson about who He was, and what power He did possess.  This was fairly early in their time with Him, and while He had performed several miracles prior to this, those were all pretty much dealing with one or two individuals at a time.  With this, He literally spoke to the wind and waves, and they obeyed Him!  No human had ever possessed that kind of authority before.  This was not just unusual but unheard of.

            Their question tells the lesson of the story.  They learned what sort of man this Jesus was.  He has authority over everything.  The word coming from His mouth carried with it the power to make it so and yet that power was more often in reserve.  He didn’t just go around telling the wind which way to blow and how hard, at least not audibly, but He could if He needed to.

            I find His response to them interesting as well.  “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?”  What do you mean, “why are you afraid?”  This lake was known for this kind of storms.  Such a storm could quickly stir up, and cause even seasoned fishermen to be concerned.  His question goes deeper though than just the storm.  Perhaps He was asking, “If you believe that I am the Son of God, don’t you think God would take better care of me than allowing me to be killed in a storm, and you with me?”

            So, what kind of storms are you facing?  Are the winds of life beating hard against your boat, nearly ready to swamp it?  Does all that you see around you look as though you are going to be swallowed by your situation?  Take heart friend, and know that the One who stilled that storm is still in control of all of life’s storms, and they are there to teach us about the One who holds authority over them.  Take heart, and know that whether or not He calms your storm, He is with you in the midst of the storm, and will not let you be swamped by it, only call on Him, cry out to Him to help you get to the other side.

            Allow Him to build your faith as you look back across His faithfulness, not only to you but to so many others who have depended on Him.  Look to the pages of Scripture that are filled with His faithfulness, His power over situations and circumstances that seemed unsurmountable.  Because He is sovereign, or possesses power and authority over all things, there is nothing that is beyond His control.  Trust Him.  He is supremely able.

           

                       

By His Grace Alone,

Pastor Bruce Jacobsen

Mt. Pleasant Church of the Brethren Newsletter, "The Right Hand Of Fellowship" pastor's article for December 2015

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!”

Luke 2:14 (ESV)

               

            “Peace”.  You’ll see it on Christmas cards, lit up in Christmas lights; it is the theme of this Sunday’s Advent candle lighting.  What is it about that word that is tied to the message of Christmas?  We might think of a quiet peaceful day with snow falling, and the winds are calm.  We might think of a candle burning quietly in the stillness, but is that what this is about?  What connection does peace have with Christmas, and it must be a strong connection, because the angels made mention of it in their proclamation?

            Let’s read the rest of that line, “and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!”  So peace here has something to do with God being pleased with us.  Now think of the relationship of the Jews prior to Christ.  If there was a word to use to describe their relationship with God, it would probably not be peace.  Fear, reverence, awe, appreciation, might all be words that come to mind, but especially with previous generations living through the time of exile to Babylon, and then for the previous 400 years, hearing nothing from God, peace was probably not a word that would come to mind when they thought of Him.

            Peace has to do with a sense of calmness, free from anxiety, a lack of worry.  They had not known much of peace nor the favor of God since the days of Solomon.  Their relationship with God had boiled down to a long list, (made longer by the scribes and Pharisees), of things to do or not do.  It had become all about outward appearances with little compassion for those of more meager standing, whether along religious or financial status. 

            How is it that they were to be able to have this peace while still here on earth?  How was it that they might become pleasing to God?  That is the beauty of this long awaited Messiah.  He came as the answer to our sin problem—purchasing our forgiveness through the sacrifice of His own blood.  Not that we immediately gain the ability to live a sinless life, but that through faith in Him we are declared righteous, or sinless before our Holy Father, and thus need not fear the judgment that was very deservedly ours.

            It is completely right that we should fear and tremble before a God who is completely holy, and by His righteous nature must carry out the proper punishment for all of us who are by nature sinners rebelling against His perfect will.  To think that on our own, outside of Christ, that we might offer some kind of defense for our behavior to this holy God is ridiculous when you think about it.  We could never offer anything to God, no matter how hard we might try, that would save us from the wrath of His anger in regard to our sin, because in God’s economy, blood has to be shed in order for sin to be forgiven.  Someone has to die for sin to be punished.  It may seem severe, but only when you don’t understand the holiness of God.

            1 John 4:10 says, “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”  Propitiation is simply defined as our means of forgiveness.  So we could translate the verse to read: “… that He loved us and sent His Son to be the means of forgiveness for our sins.”  That is how God chose to extend peace on the earth among those with whom He is pleased.  This is the importance of the term “peace” for the believer in Christ at Christmas.  For those still without a faith relationship with Christ, peace with God remains elusive and unattainable.  Know Christ, and know peace.  No Christ, no peace.

                       

By His Grace Alone,

Pastor Bruce Jacobsen

“Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his steadfast love endures forever; to him who alone does great wonders, for his steadfast love endures forever; to him who by understanding made the heavens, for his steadfast love endures forever; to him who spread out the earth above the waters, for his steadfast love endures forever; to him who made the great lights, for his steadfast love endures forever; the sun to rule over the day, for his steadfast love endures forever; and the moon and starts to rule over the night;…”

Psalm 136:3-9 (ESV)

               

            My personal preference, (for what little that is worth) is to not appreciate as much songs that are excessively repetitive.  That being the case, when this Psalm was a part of my Bible Reading program, I was tempted to just read the portions between the repetitive lines and forgo the rest.  Instead of that, I remembered that when in Scripture we see something repeated, it is done for emphasis, and we should interpret it that way.  So I forced myself to read this Psalm thoroughly and thoughtfully.   Actually by the time I was halfway through it, I was reading the verses, and inserting the word “why” before the repeated line, “for his steadfast love endures forever.”

            Look back up to the verses above, and try that.  “Give thanks to the Lord of lords.  [Why?]  For his steadfast love endures forever.”  When we read through the rest of the Psalm, asking that question each time, perhaps we understand more of the heart of the Psalmist who wrote it.  He had much to give thanks to God for, and over and above all the various things that He has done was this underlying reason, “for his steadfast love endures forever.”

            It is good for us from time to time, as we are apt to do this month, and reflect on the goodness of God, and how He has reached out to us, and ______ (you fill in the blank).  If we were to stop then, and ask the question, “why would God do all this for us?” We cannot conclude that it was because we deserve it, because quite honestly we don’t.  We must look back at His goodness, His mercy, His grace, His provision and state that it is because of His steadfast love that endures forever that He has continued to extend these and other blessings upon us.

            I invite you to pull out your Bible, and read through this Psalm thoughtfully and carefully, reading each line, and skipping nothing.  Perhaps we don’t associate as well with the lines related to Israel’s early days, but hopefully the closing verses will speak to us more directly.  “It is he who remembered us in our low estate, for his steadfast love endures forever; and rescued us from our foes, for his steadfast love endures forever; he who gives food to all flesh, for his steadfast love endures forever; Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever.” (23-26)

            So when you and your family get together this Thanksgiving Day, or at other times when you’re reflective about God’s goodness to you, don’t forget to consider that it’s because His “steadfast love endures forever” that we are able to look back and give thanks.  His love for us has never wavered, regardless of our obedience, our lack of attention to His Word, regardless of the circumstances of our lives, “His steadfast love endures forever.”

            In the world of uncertainty that we live in, in the world of cultural shift where Christianity is more often mocked in the media than celebrated, in a world where terrorism threatens our peace of mind on so many fronts, remember that “His steadfast love endures forever.”  In times of peace and prosperity or of war and poverty, remember that “His steadfast love endures forever.”  And that is something to be truly thankful for.

                       

By His Grace Alone,

Pastor Bruce Jacobsen

Pastor's Desktop Article for October 2015

“This saying is trustworthy, and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.  But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display His perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in Him for eternal life.”

1 Timothy 1:15-16 (ESV)

               

            We have some really great discussions in our Wednesday Evening Bible Study.  I’m glad to have a group of folks who are interested in digging into the Word, and growing together as we do so.  This past week, as we were discussing Romans 1:5-11, I took us on a brief “rabbit trail” to Matt. 25:31 and following, where Jesus is telling about the separating of the sheep and the goats.  All too often, we see a passage like this and say, “I need to look more like a sheep then so that I get to enjoy the reward, because the goats don’t fare so well in this story.”  That’s not the point of the story at all.  Jesus is saying that because those represented by the sheep are recognized by their actions for the faith they possessed that caused them to respond to the needs before them.

            For most people in the world, seeing someone else’s need and responding to it out of love doesn’t come naturally.  Our natural inclination is to look out for ourselves, and maybe for those close to us that we relate to easily.  For those whose nature has been changed supernaturally by the grace of God working in us through His Holy Spirit, we tend to see the world differently.  We still have to fight against our selfish will more often that we would like, but there is another voice inside of us, another set of eyes, that cause us to respond differently than we would have prior to coming to faith in Jesus Christ.

            What got me wondering a bit was how small that group seems to be in a world that is so set against that.  Then I remembered how Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount, about the wide and narrow gates.  “Enter by the narrow gate.  For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.  For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”  Do we who have come to faith realize how precious a gift that faith is, and not only did we not deserve it, but the initiative for our faith was God’s doing, and not our own?

            A hymn came to my mind, sometime later after that Bible Study that seems to not be terribly familiar, in fact, I could not find it in any hymnal I have, but finally found the lyrics online.  It was written by C. Bishop, and called Such Love. I’ll just include the first verse and chorus.  “That God should love a sinner such as I, Should yearn to change my sorrow into bliss, Nor rest till He had planned to bring me nigh, How wonderful is love like this?  Such love, such wondrous love, Such love, such wondrous love, That God should love a sinner such as I, How wonderful is love like this.”

            Perhaps no one else who reads this will remember this old hymn, (though I suspect someone might) and I can’t even remember where I have sung it, but it sums up Paul’s sentiments in the 1 Timothy passage above, and my heart as I reflected on how blessed I am, how blessed any of us are to have come to faith in Christ, and to avoid what will truly be for many on that Day, a horrible reality in eternity.

            I know how undeserving I am of that kind of love, and if you’re anything like me, you’re in the same boat.  So to use the words of Charles Wesley’s more well-known hymn, And Can It Be, “Amazing love! How can it be, That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me!”  Take some time today to reflect on the incredible grace of God.

                       

By His Grace Alone,

Pastor Bruce Jacobsen