Helmet or Ball Cap?

I posted this 18 months ago. I thought it good to bring it out again:

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Now here is an absurd visual: A soldier going into heavy battle replacing his steel helmet with a cloth ball cap. I thought of that silly image this morning as I read through 1 Thessalonians and got to 5:8 – “But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.”

I checked the Greek dictionary for the word St Paul used here and translated ‘hope.’  The Greek word, elpis, is not defined as a ‘maybe’ hope – like saying, “I hope it will not rain Saturday,” or, “I hope I get that promotion.”

It might or might not rain on Saturday. And the person might or might not get that promotion.

But the New Testament Greek word, elpis, is much more definite than a wishful hope. The Greek word means a ‘confident expectation’ that something will and without reason to doubt – it WILL occur.

Why will it occur? Because elpis, as used by the New Testament writers, is rooted and anchored in the promises of almighty God.

Another Bible translation, The New Living Translation, recognizes the nuance of elpis when it translates verse 8 this way: “But let us who live in the light be clearheaded, protected by the armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.”

Did you catch that? “The CONFIDENCE of our salvation” is our helmet, a head covering stronger even than the steel ones worn by soldiers on the battlefield. That helmet God provides is our protection against all the flaming arrows of the evil one. It shields us from his seductive lies that whisper, “Ahhh, you never can know of your salvation until you die.”

But God tells a different story. Here are only a few Biblical promises in which every Christian can place complete and utter confidence:

John 3:36  “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him.” (Just as an aside, “belief” in the New Testament is always characterized by obedience”).

John 5:24  “Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes in the one who sent me has eternal life and will not come to condemnation, but has passed from death to life.”

1 John 5:13  “I write these things to you so that you may know that you have eternal life, you who believe in the name of the Son of God.”

Please note those verb tenses. They are all in the present tense. In other words, if you believe, then you have.

That’s why the New Testament letter to the Hebrews tells us: “[S]o that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. (Hebrews 6:18-20).

What kind of headgear are you wearing in the spiritual battle raging around us? If it’s cloth, then take it off and replace it with the impenetrable helmet of a confident expectation that God will do as He promises to do for all who follow Jesus as Lord, Master, and Savior.

Fifth Sunday of Lent 2020: Dry Bones and the Resurrection - part two

Part one of this message centered on Ezekiel’s Dry Bones vision in chapter 37 of his book. You can find part one at this link: Part One at This Link.

You can also find my recording of this message at this link: Video
Part two now continues with the passage in Romans. For the sake of clarity, I quote from the New Living Translation: 

“[L]etting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God. 

“But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all. And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God.  . . . ¹⁴ For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.”

Ezekiel tells us that those who are without the spirit of God living in them are dead. In this passage from Romans, Paul tells us that those without the Spirit of Christ living in them are NOT children of God. 

This is a crucial point that we must fully understand. I have heard it said so often – and probably you have, too – that all humanity are God’s children. 

While that might be a comforting idea, it is a lie straight from hell itself. God’s word again and again tells a different story. Look once more at verse nine in this 8th chapter of Romans: “And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all. And then drop down to verse 14: For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. 

God tells us either we are children of God or children of the devil. There are no other options. Hear what Jesus told some of the religious leaders of His day. He said: “You are of your father, the devil.” (John 8:44) 

The apostle John writes in his first epistle (1 John 3:8, 10): “The one who practices sin is of the devil . . . By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother. (1 John 3:8-10) 

It is a mortally dangerous idea to think we are children of God simply because God created us. If we are all children of God without Christ, then Jesus died for nothing. If we are all God’s children outside of Christ, then all humanity is destined for heaven because the heavenly Father would never condemn His child to an eternity in the Lake of Fire. 

No, my brothers and sisters. God clearly teaches it again and again so we won't miss it: Without the spirit of God breathing life into our dry bones, we are just that – dry bones that will turn to dust. Without the spirit of Christ in us, we are children of the flesh and not at all children of God. 

Which begs the question: How does a person become a child of God? There’s an easy answer to that question. When the religious priests and laity asked Peter the same question, this is what he answered in Acts 2:38-42: 

“Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” 

How does a person become a child of God? To summarize Peter: Confess you sins. In other words, agree with God that His commandments are right and just, and that you have broken His commandments. Then repent. Tell God are sorry for your rebellions against His commandments. If you haven’t already been baptized, be baptized. 

Which now brings us to the gospel reading found in John 11. It’s the story wherein Jesus raised Lazarus from the grave. It’s the perfect merging of the theme of Ezekiel’s Dry Bones, and what Paul said in Romans 8 that only those with the Spirit of Christ will live forever in God’s kingdom. 

This story of Lazarus is also a long read, so I will summarize it for you. I urge you to also read the chapter later today. 

Jesus got word that His friend Lazarus was dead. He and His disciples went to the tomb where Lazarus had been buried for four days. Lazarus’s sisters and the other mourners were lamenting at the tomb. It is at this point Jesus said to one of Lazarus’ sisters: 

“Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” She *said to Him, “Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world.”  John 11:23-27 

Listen. This is really important. If you don’t get this, you will spend your eternity forever away from the presence of God. Forever in agony in the lake of fire, along with the devil and his angels. 

This is crucial for your eternal destiny: Jesus alone is the resurrection and eternal life. He Himself warns all humanity – all those dry bones, all those who have turned away from obedience to Christ – He warns all of us, even those who attend Mass every day, those who teach Sunday School classes and sing in the choir, who carry their bibles to Bible studies and worship services but are not truly Born Again – Jesus warns us all – No one comes to the Father except through Him. 

‘No one’ means ‘no one.’ Whatever their religious label – Jew, Baptist, Catholic, Methodist, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Presbyterian, Pentecostal – on and on the list goes. No one comes to eternal life except through the risen Jesus.

The risen Jesus. 

That’s where we are headed on this Lenten journey, even in the middle of this terrible pandemic ravaging its way across nations – we are headed on this Lenten journey toward Resurrection Sunday – that glorious and undeniable truth believed by everyone humble enough to hear what God has to say about the matter. 

Jesus entered humanity to rescue us from the eternal reward of our sin – that being eternal death. He came to us in a manger in that little town of Bethlehem to become our atoning sacrifice, to take upon Himself the wrath of God due to each of us because of our sins. 

Are you still dry bones? Do you know deep in your heart that you are living in and for your fleshly desires – and not living according to the spirit of Christ? 

If that’s your story, I have good news for you. Great news for you. You can change the ending. How? 

Do as Peter told the crowd of religious leaders and laity: Confess your sins to God. Then repent – turn from your sins. If you’ve never been baptized, be baptized. And seek the power of the Holy Spirit to follow Jesus’ commandments the rest of your days.

And if you know that you know Jesus, then I urge you to frequently – every day – Confess your sins to God. Repent. And seek daily the power of the Holy Spirit to follow Jesus’ commandments all the rest of your days. 

Please, won't you surrender all you have, all you are, all you hope to be – surrender it all to the one who created you and loves you enough to die to save your soul from an eternity of anguish? Don’t remain dry bones. Spiritually dead. Necrotic. Ask God to breathe life into your soul. 

It is the only way to ensure for yourself a resurrection to eternal life.

Fifth Sunday of Lent 2020: Dry Bones and the Resurrection - part one

I recorded this message and uploaded it to YouTube at this link: https://youtu.be/VruF_CgW4WQ   If more convenient, you can read the text below. It is in two parts. You can find part two (and part one) on my blog at this link:

Dry Bones and the Resurrection

Today is the 5th Sunday of Lent. Lent, as many of you know, is that season in the church calendar during which many Christians remind ourselves afresh of the reason Jesus permitted Himself to be crucified on that cross. He did so to offer Himself to God as an atoning sacrifice – atoning not for His sins, but for your sins. And mine. 

As Isaiah prophesied 700 years before Jesus was born: “But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.” Isaiah 53:5-6 

I suspect many people who observe Lent are looking at the season differently this year than in the past. The coronavirus is reminding us all of our mortality – and with thoughts of our mortality, many are forced to consider – and I hope – wisely prepare for their eternal destiny. 

It is also my hope that what I am about to share with you will clearly explain how to wisely prepare for our eternal destiny. 

So, another week of Lent has passed during which Christians have had opportunity to draw ever closer to Jesus and reflect more purposefully on the final events of His life that brought forgiveness to those who follow Him in obedience. 

Those events, of course, are Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday. Good Friday is the day on which our savior died in our place, and Resurrection Sunday when Jesus rose physically from death. As St. Paul reminds us in his letter to the Christians at Rome: “[Jesus] . . . was delivered over because of our transgressions and was raised because of our justification.” (Romans 4:25). 

I will build my message today around themes found in the liturgical readings for today from Ezekiel 37, Romans 8, and John 11. 

Let’s turn first to Ezekiel 37. Many know this text as the ‘Dry Bones’ chapter. It’s a long one, so I will quickly summarize it. I hope you will take some time to read the entire chapter yourself. 

God brought Ezekiel in a vision to a valley full of dry bones. There were probably thousands and thousands of them. As far as the eye could see. And God said to the prophet: “Prophesy over these bones and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.’ Thus says the Lord God to these bones, ‘Behold, I will cause breath to enter you that you may come to life. I will put sinews on you, make flesh grow back on you, cover you with skin and put breath in you that you may come alive; and you will know that I am the Lord.’”

When Ezekiel did as God commanded, the bones all came together. Muscles, tendons, and flesh then covered the bones. But they had no life. God said again to Ezekiel: “Prophesy to the breath . . . Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they come to life.”’” When Ezekiel spoke again, the bodies came to life and stood on their feet – a massive army.

Then God explained the meaning of the dry bones to Ezekiel: “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel; behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope has perished. We are completely cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves . . . I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life . . . .” 

I want to make sure you caught the image God painted for us in this 37th chapter of Ezekiel. The people were dead. Not partially dead. Not to varying degrees of dead. They were completely, totally, utterly dead. They were nothing but bones drying on the ground. 

Let me pause a moment and tell you a true story that will illustrate this important message of hope and of exhortation from Ezekiel’s vision. 

I still remember that hot and muggy August day years ago in San Diego. As I jogged around the neighborhood, my sweat-soaked shirt clung like a second skin. Waves of heat rippled above the asphalt. The humidity was so high, I thought I was breathing water. 

That suffocating combination of heat and humidity is probably why I smelled the cat before I saw it. I rounded the corner and spotted its decaying body in weeds by the curb. Its lifeless lips tightened into a grotesque grin.  Sun-bleached ribs peeked through putrefying flesh. I held my breath and picked up the pace to move past the odor. 

Over the years, I’ve passed dozens of dead animals during my exercise routine, and I always ignored them. But this time my thoughts wandered back to the cat. And this question dropped into my thoughts. 

“What if someone dressed the dead cat in a silk suit and tie?” For a moment, the image startled me. And then I wondered, “What if someone draped a gold chain around its neck and splashed expensive cologne on its face?” 

Well, I assure you, a gallon of cologne couldn’t have masked the odor of death, nor could the most expensive clothes disguise its hideous appearance. Nothing short of God’s supernatural intervention could breathe the fragrance of life into that corpse. 

Scripture repeats the message so often, we miss it only because we CHOOSE to miss it. Without Christ, we are all spiritually dead in our sins. That’s the point of the Dry Bones in Ezekiel’s vision. Without God’s intervention the Dry Bones would have turned to dust in that valley. 

That’s also the message the Holy Spirit tried to impress on those in Ephesus, to whom the apostle Paul wrote: You were dead in your transgressions and sins” (Ephesians 2:1). The Greek word the apostle used to emphasize what their condition was before God made them alive in Christ (v. 4) is nekros. It’s the same word from which English speakers get necrotic. It means lifeless. 

In other words, before God’s intervention through Christ, they were DEAD. Not partially dead. Not to a degree dead. They were – and without Christ WE are – without spiritual life in the smallest iota. 

And so, I say it again for emphasis. Please don’t miss this: We are not, as some like to say, ‘diamonds covered with mud.”  We are not dead to ‘varying degrees.” God tells us we are necrotic – “Dead in our trespasses and sins.”  And without God’s intervention we are all without hope and without God in the world. 

It doesn’t matter who we are, or what we have – religious titles, academic degrees, church affiliation, hefty bank accounts, political power, or accolades from the rich and powerful. Without Christ, we stink (Isaiah 64:6; 2 Corinthians 2:15,16), and God can smell us on the other side of the universe. 

And nothing short of His supernatural power, exercised only through His Son, gives us life. In His conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus called it being, “born from above” (John 3). In his first epistle, St. Peter called it being ‘born again’ (1 Peter 1). 

Comparing myself to a dead animal or to bones bleaching in the sun is not the thing you like to discuss over coffee. But those images DO give me a glimpse of God’s wondrously amazing mercy. Why? Because regardless of the depth and frequency of our sins, God’s grace will cleanse us. By our faith in and obedience to Christ, God clothes us in glistening robes and breathes life into our necrotic corpse (Isaiah 61:10). 

No one smells so badly that Jesus’ blood cannot transform the necrotic odor of death into the sweet fragrance of eternal life. We have Scripture’s promise about it. 

But we also have Scripture’s warning: Jesus is not the best way to heaven. He is not the best way to have spiritual life. He is the only way. Without Him, we are dead to God. 

Which brings us to the second reading for today, Romans 8:6-10, 14. I continue this message in part two.

Predestined to Hell -- Oh, Really?

I wrote this several months ago. Then last evening I read something by a theologian of Calvinist persuasion. I got so riled up I yelled at the pages.  And then I thought it might be good to just repost this piece. ------ Predestined.

That word has caused more theological debates over the millennia than perhaps any other doctrinal concept. I believe it was St. Augustine who first proposed the idea. Some 1100 years later, John Calvin formed an entire denomination around the idea. I know I am not about to settle the debate here. But I will tell you with as much clarity as I can why I know, based on Scripture, that God does not predestine (meaning He removes the ability of choice) – God does not predestine anyone into the Lake of Fire. That would make God not only a monster, but it would place Him in competition with the devil for the one who is the most sinister. Mount Calvary should immediately shut down any doubt about God’s character. God sent His Son to die an ugly and bloody death so EVERYONE would have the same chance and the same choice to live eternally with Him. How could a merciful God predestine anyone to spend eternity in the Lake of Fire? Imagine if God predestined your child to hell. Could you love a God who foreordained before all ages that your child could never be saved, could never have a choice to turn toward Him in faith? As I see it, if that doctrine is not straight from the bowels of hell, then hell is not real. Paul clarifies predestination in Romans 8. I don’t understand why his clarification doesn’t settle the question. Here is what he says in context: “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified."(Romans 8:28-30) The Holy Spirit tells us through the apostle's pen that God knew IN ADVANCE who would choose to follow His Son. In His omniscience – (there is nothing God does not, did not, or cannot know) – in God’s foreknowledge He knew BEFORE the ages even began, who would turn toward the Savior and who would turn away. I mean, after all, He is God! If He didn’t know the end from the beginning of everything, if He didn’t have inerrant foreknowledge, then He wouldn’t be God. It is those whom He foreknew would turn toward the Savior that He predestined to be conformed into the image of His Son. Predestination doesn’t come first. Foreknowledge comes first. God simply orchestrates our lives and our circumstances to bring about the end that He knew would occur from the beginning of the ages. Because Paul understood God’s omniscience and His omnipotence he wrote further in this chapter: “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? "Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? . . . . "But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

The Love of God. The mercy of God. The gentleness, the tenderness of God. The very idea that God predestines anyone to eternal darkness, the place where there is unending wailing and gnashing of teeth, is totally incompatible and irreconcilable with the God of the Bible.

Lent and the Pandemic

My wife just reminded me, isn't it a wonderfully amazing thing that our loving God has caused the ENTIRE world to consider their mortality -- and to do so during this season of Lent?

I mean, He could have brought this pandemic on the globe at any time of the year -- but it is at THIS time, Lent, when the Christian calendar offers humanity an opportunity to think of eternity, and what Jesus did for us to ensure salvation to those who believe in and obey the Savior.

God has brought to the entire planet, during THIS particular season, serious and compelling reason for everyone to think about their mortality and their eternal destiny.

Thank you, Lord, for your great kindness. Holy Spirit, please bring revival to your world. Turn all of our hearts -- atheist, agnostic, Jew, Christian, Muslim, Hindi, Buddhist, religious and irreligious -- turn our hearts toward your beloved Son, Jesus, in whom alone we will find eternal life. Amen.

Be Not Afraid -- Message for the Fourth Sunday of Lent

Be Not Afraid

I uploaded this Sunday message to YouTube at this link: https://youtu.be/3giLOyeQ1Ck   The message is about 25 minutes. Or you can read the edited print version below. I am praying for us all during this troubling time.

Be Not Afraid: Fourth Sunday of Lent Message on this 4th Sunday of Lent in the midst of the coronavirus. youtu.be

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Today is the fourth Sunday of Lent. Who could have known only a month ago, on Ash Wednesday as we began this 40 day journey toward Resurrection Sunday – who could have known we would as a nation – indeed, as a global community, be where we are today, on Sunday, March 22?

Fear of an invisible enemy has enveloped entire nations – an enemy that threatens our health, even our lives and the lives of those we love. Fear of that enemy has altered our lifestyles and our finance to a degree that no one would not have thought possible only a month ago.

As I prepared for this message, I sensed a nudge from the Holy Spirit to look at the standard liturgical readings for today. Those who have listened to or read my Sunday messages in the past know I don’t typically use any liturgical reading for my sermon texts. But this time is different.

Liturgical churches establish their Sunday and weekday readings years in advance. My church, the Catholic Church – set these following readings for this fourth Sunday of Lent. The relevance of these texts – chosen years ago – the relevance of these texts to the current pandemic caught my attention.

The Old Testament reading is from First Samuel 16. The context tells us God instructed Samuel the prophet to go to Bethlehem, to the house of Jesse, to anoint one of his sons as king. When Samuel entered Jesse’s house and saw Eliab, Jesse’s handsome oldest son, Samuel thought to himself, ‘Surely this is the one God has chosen to lead Israel.”

But God corrected the prophet with these words: “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

Samuel, like so many of us, made a knee-jerk decision based on what he saw with his natural senses. We can't easily escape what our natural senses tell us. Turn on the radio or television news for thirty seconds and you’ll get enough information about the current global health crisis to scare you into hiding under your beds.

But God wants to remind us in this passage from 1 Samuel – what WE see is not all there is to know. There are things moving through the spiritual realm that are not perceivable with our five senses.

Let me remind you of the story in Second Kings 6 of Elisha and his servant. They were in the city of Dothan in Israel when the Syrian king sent his army to capture the prophet. In the morning light, Elisha’s servant looked out the window and panicked. The hills surrounding Dothan glistened with the armament of thousands of soldiers and chariots awaiting orders to capture the prophet.

“Master! What shall we do?”

Do you remember Elisha’s response? “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then Elisha asked the Lord to open the eyes of his servant, and we beheld the angelic hosts and God’s chariots of fire all around them.

You and I who belong to God through Jesus Christ should not see this coronavirus pandemic as non-believers see it. That’s what God said to his prophet Samuel. Don’t look at things according to appearances. In other words, don’t focus your attention on the television and radio and internet about the virus surrounding the globe. If you’re a Christian, be CERTAIN of this: Greater is He who is WITH you and IN you, than that which is in the world. (1 John 4:4)

Remember Peter and the boat. The apostle stepped out onto the waves with his eyes fixed on the Jesus. But at the last moment he must have taken his eyes off the Lord and stared at the waves. And he sank like a rock. Peter ALMOST made it all the way to Jesus before he took his eyes off the prize.

Please listen, my brothers and sisters: As the winds howl and waves of fear come near to swamping your boat, keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, who is the source of our faith and the one who perfects our faith (Hebrews 12:2). Keep pressing forward toward the Master and stop looking at the waves. Satan wants us to fear – because fear turns our eyes from Jesus, and when that happens, we sink.

God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and sound judgement (2 Tim 1:7). God is absolutely and unalterably sovereign over life and death, sickness and health, storms and waves – and nothing, nothing can come into your life or mine without God – the God who loves each of His children as much as He loves His son, Jesus [John 17:23] – nothing comes into our lives without His expressed permission. That’s why God gives us a spirit of sound judgement. When people panic, they usually make poor decisions.

Some say the Bible tells us 365 times to “Fear not” or “Be not afraid.” After some research I learned the Scripture uses those phrases only about 100 times. However, that number of 100 does not take into account the times Scripture encourages us to ‘trust God,’ and to put our ‘hope and confidence in God.’ Those phrases, along with ‘Do not fear’ surely brings those words of God’s encouragement to us hundreds and hundreds of times.

Are we feeding our fear with a steady diet of newscasts? Or are we feeding our FAITH with a steady diet of God’s word and faith-strengthening books and Bible-based podcasts and other internet sources? Do we think it was for no purpose the Holy Spirit gave us these words through Paul’s pen:

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if anything is excellent, and if anything is praiseworthy, think about these things. The things that you learned, received, heard, and saw in me: Keep doing these things. And the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4:8-9)

May God help us to stop looking at things as non-believes look at them. May He help us to look at things as HE sees them.

Which brings us to the next liturgical reading for today: Psalm 23. What an appropriate reading God designed YEARS ago for this fourth Sunday of Lent in 2020. In the midst of a global pandemic:

"The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me . . . . Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever."

No one has the right or the authority to promise Christians will not get sick, or even die from this plague. You and I are human, and we are each subject to the same sicknesses and diseases, the same heart attacks and cancers, and everything else that has afflicted humanity since Adam and Ever brought sin into God’s perfect creation.

But I CAN promise you this, because God promises it: If you’re a child of God through faith in Christ’s atonement for your sins, and you walk in obedience to Him – though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we do not need to fear, for God is with us. Emmanuel is with us. Always.

He is with us in our health and in our sickness, in our joys and in our despairs. And absolutely it is always true, goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives, and we WILL dwell in the house of the lord forever.

Does this mean we can act imprudently, or recklessly? Should we live as if there is no danger of contracting the coronavirus? Of course not. Remember when the devil told to Jesus to throw Himself off the Temple roof because “God will protect you,” Jesus answered, “It is written you shall not put the Lord your God to the test.”

In the 16th century, when Martin Luther was dealing with The Black Death plague, he wrote to his friend, John Hess, words that can help inform us today as we deal with the virus among us:

“I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. Then I shall fumigate, help purify the air, administer medicine and take it. I shall avoid places and persons where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance inflict and pollute others and so cause their death as a result of my negligence.

“If God should wish to take me, he will surely find me, and I have done what he has expected of me – and so I am not responsible for either my own death or the death of others. “If my neighbor needs me, however. I shall not avoid place or person but will go freely as stated above. See this is such a God-fearing faith because it is neither brash nor foolhardy and does not tempt God."

We now come to the New Testament liturgical reading for today. St. Paul writes in Ephesians 5:8, “For you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light.”

The Gospel text is from John chapter nine in which Jesus healed the man born blind. But there is another text that can be read prior to the ninth chapter of John. It’s John 8:12, which reads: “Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”

I want to combine the text in Ephesians wherein Paul admonishes us to walk as children of light and what Jesus said in John chapter eight: I am the Light of the world. He who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Those of us who follow Christ have the incredible privilege to be lights of hope and exhortation and yes, even warning to a world stumbling in spiritual darkness. The nations who’ve turned from God – including America – see lots of darkness. Fear has blinded their eyes. And what is it they cannot see?

Let me suggest this answer: They cannot see the Lord calling all of us to repentance – personal repentance for our rebellions against God’s commandments, and national repentance for our brazenly soul-numbing sins of abortion, fornication, adultery and all sorts of sexual perversions.

We are guilty of murders and slanders and lies and cheating and drunkenness and idolatries of all sorts. And the root of it all might be traced to a common and near-global blasphemy against God Himself and those who love Him and who tell others of His glory and grace and offer for forgiveness to those who obey Him.

No one can read the Bible with any sense of humility and not recognize God’s patience is not without limit. He has used war and famine and pestilence and earthquakes time and time again to judge and to discipline nations and even – perhaps especially – those that used to follow God.

Yes, you and I run the serious risk of vicious mockery from others when we suggest this current pandemic might be of God’s doing. Well, so be it. God’s spokespeople rarely find warm acceptance from non-believers. But that does not nullify our responsibility to tell others the truth.

Finally, let me add this: Christians like to quote 2 Chronicles 7:14 as if by naming it and claiming it God is obligated to heal our land. But let’s look at that verse in context with the one before it:

"If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

I hope you caught every word of those two verses. If God sends pestilence, and if His people humble themselves, and turn from their wicked ways . . . THEN He will hear . . . and He will heal.

God will do His part, but He expects us to do ours. And ours is to confess and turn from our evil ways.

So, let’s wrap this up with a quick review of today’s message:

1. Don’t look at the current health crisis with the eyes of flesh. Look at it with the eyes of faith – faith in the Almighty and Sovereign God who will use this plague for His glory and the salvation of those who need this wake-up call to repentance and conversion.

2. We must never test God by acting imprudently in the face of this health crisis. And if we become infected, God has promised to walk with us, even through the valley of the shadow of death.

3. Christian, you are a child of Light. Walk as a child of Light. With your faith in Christ alone, ask the Holy Spirit to point others to the Light of the world who alone takes away our sins and cause us to walk without stumbling.

I conclude now with this quote from St. Padre Pio: “Remember . . . the words of the Divine Master to His apostles, which He [also] directs to us today: “Let not your hearts be troubled.” Yes . . . . do not let your heart be in turmoil in the hour of trial, because Jesus has promised His assistance to whoever follows Him.”

The Pandemic and God

I received a text the other day. And I confess that it greatly disturbed me. My pope (I am Catholic) – and he is not alone among religious leaders of every denomination – Pope Francis rightly called for all peoples to join together in prayer for an end to this plague.

Certainly, Pope Francis did what is right to do. He, and every other pastor and bishop and deacon and THOSE IN THE PEWS – must pray. 

But that is only half of the story.

All Christians have the incredible privilege to be lights of hope and exhortation and yes, even warning to a world in stumbling in spiritual darkness. The nations who’ve turned from God – including our own nation of America – see lots of darkness. Fear has blinded their eyes. And what is it they cannot see?

Let me suggest this answer: They cannot see nor hear the Lord calling all of us to repentance – personal repentance for our rebellions against God’s commandments and national repentance for our ongoing and brazenly soul-numbing sins, from abortion, fornication, adultery and all sorts of sexual perversions.

Nations – including America – are guilty of murders and slanders and lies and cheating and drunkenness and idolatries of all sorts. And the root of it all can be traced to a common and near-global blasphemy against God Himself and those who love Him and who tell others of His grace AND judgement, and His offer for forgiveness to those who will obey Him.

No one can read the Bible with any sense of humility and not recognize God’s patience is not without limit. He has used war and famine and pestilence and earthquakes time and time again to judge and to discipline nations and even – perhaps especially – those that used to follow God.

Yes, you and I run the serious risk of blatant mockery from others when we suggest this current pandemic might be of God’s doing. Well, so be it.

Finally, let me add this: Christians like to quote 2 Chronicles 7:14 as if by naming it and claiming it God is obligated to heal our land. But let’s look quickly at that verse in context with the one before it:

"If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, 14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

I hope you caught every word of those two verses: If God sends pestilence, and if His people humble themselves, and turn from their wicked ways . . . then He will hear, and He will heal.

God will do His part, but He expects us to do ours. And our part is to confess and turn from our evil ways.